During the Tay Son uprising (1779-1796), the Srok of Preah Trapeang had given asylum to the fugitive Vietnamese Emperor Gia Long so that he could reconstitute forces against his own warlord Tay Son. King Ang Eng (1779-96) of the Khmer Empire had also provided a military support to this Vietnamese Emperor as a gesture of a good neighbor. However, after regained throne of Annam from the Tay Son, Gia Long arbitrarily turned the Srok Preah Trapeang into a Vietnamese colony. During his dynasty (1802-19), king Gia Long started an irrigation project in the Province of Mot Chrouk (Chaudoc). Thousands of the Khmer Krom were forced to dig a canal named Chum Nik Prek Teng (Vinh Te), 53 kilometers long and 25 meters wide, from Bassac River to the Gulf of Siam. During this forced labor project from 1813-1820, many thousands of the Khmer Krom were killed. In one particular instance the Khmer workers were buried alive so that the Vietnamese soldiers could use their heads as stove stands to boil water for tea for their Vietnamese masters. The phrase “Be careful not to spill the masters’Tea” is still well reminded to there Children by all Khmer Krom parents or grandparents. Before the Canal Project well done, Annamite soldiers held khmer laborers into Pillories, each fillory contained about 20-40 people (they said to prevent Khmer laborers run away from mobilization),at least from 2-5 thousand were locked in pillories located in the canal; the dam was opened, water filled the canal, all Khmer laborers were drowned, no one was survive. (Listen to the Te Ong Anussa´s song that means the Master´s Tea Memo).
